


The Field Trip

by AXEe



Series: Family Matters [22]
Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Gen, Haunted House, References to Ghostbusters, References to Scooby-Doo, References to the Goosebumps books, Twlight Zone References
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-07
Updated: 2017-06-18
Packaged: 2018-10-29 08:14:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,586
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10850004
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AXEe/pseuds/AXEe
Summary: Field trips are supposed to be fun and safe.  Right?





	1. The Camp Ground

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! More Family Matters! :=), this time we're doing a bit of spookiness, with a haunted house. Also, a reader of "Family Matters" commented that I have often pushed Alura to the side in favor of CJ, along with Alura's relationship with James, I'm ashamed to admit that they were right, I was fully intending when I first started writing "Family Matters" to alternate it, one set of chapters would focus on CJ and her mothers and another set would focus on Alura and her parents, but somewhere along the way CJ and her mothers got more screen time (I guess that they have very good agents or something :=).
> 
> Anyway, this fic--in addition to being an attempt at writing a thriller/ghost story-type work (my first ever attempt, please be gentle)--is also an attempt to show James and Alura's relationship, as well as showing more of her relationship with CJ (what better way to do that then with a haunted house/ghost story :=), which we will hopefully see in "Family Matters". As to where this fic takes place in the overall Family Matters-verse, I'd say it takes place around year before "Family Matters", so around the same time as "Dinner With the Girls", meaning that Alura's fourteen and CJ's fifteen.
> 
> Anyway, please enjoy and let me know what you thought :=)

******

**Sequoia National Forest**   
**2034**

“This isn’t too bad,” James commented as he climbed out of the car, waving to the other parents as he did “fresh air, trees, greenery--”

“I can’t get any reception” Alura moaned, waving her cell phone around

“Oh my god,” CJ groaned “Ally, you’re in the Sequoia National Forest, one of the most beautiful places on Earth, and you’re worried about your phone?!” she looked over at James and rolled her eyes, he chuckled, but mentally sighed as he looked at his daughter, this field trip was an overnight affair, one of the few that school had every few years. Despite Kara’s objections, James had pushed for it, arguing that, one, it would do Alura good to get out into nature and away from technology for awhile (he’d been spending too much time around Astra ‘I’m-a-New-Age-alien-hippie’ Danvers, he figured), and, two, it would give him and Alura a chance to hopefully bond a little. Kara had finally relented when he mentioned that.

As for CJ, well, she’d just wanted to come to see Mother Nature, which James had happily agreed to, and—after prying her out of Astra and Alex’s death grips with the promise that he’d watch her and take good care of her—he piled the two girls into the car and followed the group of five other cars up into the mountains to a small camp ground

“So, where are we staying, anyway?” CJ wondered

“Don’t know,” James admitted “your teacher should know that”

“I’m _not_ sleeping on the ground” Alura objected vehemently

“Why not? It’d suit you” CJ teased

“Girls,” James warned “this is supposed to be a nice time away from it all, can we avoid World War Three, please?”

The girls each scowled at each other, but nodded

“Mr. Olsen!” the teacher for the field trip, a very _perky_ young woman named ‘Ms. Fresher’ (yes, that was her actual name) waved as she came over, she was the biology teacher at Otto Binder High, and as such had pushed for the field trip as a way for the students to learn about ecology and biodiversity, she was also an alien, but very few students or parents held that against her because she was so likeable. Even now, her, ironically, green skin glinted in the sun as she hurried over to the trio

“Hello, Ms. Fresher” James greeted, shaking her hand

“Hello,” she greeted “every turned out OK, I hope?” she asked “no unexpected surprises on the trip up?”

“No, none” James smiled, she smiled back, her smile slightly wider than a human’s

“And how are my two favorite students doing? Enjoy themselves I hope?”

“One of us is,” CJ nodded “the other…not so much”

“Go suck on an egg” Alura retorted, still scowling

“Class!” Ms. Fresher clapped her hands, getting everyone’s attention “firstly, thank you all for coming, and thanks to the parents for agreeing to this little trip. Now, as you can see its getting late, so we’ll be sleeping over there,” she pointed to a large, rambling, log cabin-like structure off in the distance, just a short walk way “and then, tomorrow morning we’ll get started on the lesion,” she beamed again and tuned towards the trail “and we’re walking!” she chirped

“I like her and all,” CJ began, slinging her backup onto her shoulder “but, seriously, sometimes….”

“I know what you mean,” James chuckled as he looked around the group, there were only five other students, ten if you counted the one parent who had accompanied the students on the trip. There was a tall boy named ‘Jake’ who was a recent emigrate from Scotland, and whose accent was so thick that it made him virtually unintelligible at times, who’d been accompanied by his mother, who shared his accent and had a fiery nature. Another one was a girl named ‘Allison’, who was shyer and more mousey than CJ (which was saying something, seeing as how CJ could disappear in a crowd of two at times), who’d come with her father, a very overprotective man apparently, who was actually holding her hand as they trekked up to the cabin. The other two students and their parents James didn’t know, and neither did the girls.

“Whoa!” Alura exclaimed. Looking up, James could see that the log cabin-like structure looked more like a small hotel or inn made to look like a log cabin, there were at least a dozen windows that he could see, along with a rambling, overgrown garden and what looked like an old well “I take it back,” Alura continued, grinning “this place is wicked!”

“Yeah” CJ muttered, frowning

“CJ? You OK?” James asked

“Yeah, cuz, you look…kinda spooked” Alura noted, CJ looked around, slowly turning in a circle

“Something…,” she shook her head “I don’t know… _off_ about this place”

“Like what?” James asked

“If I knew I’d tell you,” she smiled and shook her head “ah, its probably nothing, just my nerves. First trip away from home, remember?”

“Dork,” Alura muttered, she grinned and tapped CJ’s arm “last one in's a rotten egg!” she called out, sprinting off at human-speed, CJ quickly giving chase.’

James looked around him, there _was_ something off about this place. Like something was watching him…


	2. The Cabin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello all! We're back! Yes, that's right "The Field Trip" is finally being updated! :=). Sorry it took so long, but part of the problem was the fact that I personally don't like horror stories, so its kind of hard to write for a genre that I don't really know. Also, I was seesawing on whether it should be an _actual_ haunting, or something like an alien mimicking a haunting, in the end, I've decided to leave it ambiguous, so you can decide for yourselves.
> 
> Anyway, sorry about the delay, hope everybody enjoys this, and ONWARDS!! :=)

******

Unpacking his bag, James frowned at the girls who were now engaged in a coin toss to see who would get the cot and who’d get the floor, so far it was a tie

“Girls” he warned without bothering to turn back and look at what he now knew had devolved into a shoving match

“She started it!” they both exclaimed

“Well I’m ending it!” James snarled as he whirled around “new idea, you both get the floor”

“What?!” they both yelped

“You heard me,” he nodded towards their bags “you both have sleeping bags, well now; you’ll get to use them”

The girls whirled to face each other

“This is your fault!” they both accused each other. James was thankfully spared from breaking up yet _another_ argument by a knock on the door

“It’s open” he called out, the door opened, Ms. Fresher peering around the side

“Mr. Olsen, girls,” she greeted “everything…OK?” she trailed off and stared. Sighing, James looked back to see that both girls now had each other in a headlock “is this…a normal occurrence?” Ms. Fresher asked as the two teens finally broke up, glaring at each other

“Unfortunately,” James sighed “uh, was there something you wanted?” he asked

“Hmm? Oh, yes,” she smiled brightly again “everyone’s gathering in the den for an early dinner, would you and the girls care to join us?”

“Girls?” James asked, turning back

“Sure,” CJ panted out “sounds fun”

“Yeah, whatever” Alura mumbled

******

“This is a _cool_ building,” CJ commented as their little group made their way to the den “look at all this wood, the engravings, oh! I’m in love!” she grinned, which made James and Alura snicker

“It used to be a private home before, back in the 1890s,” Ms. Fresher explained “but eventually, the new owners turned it into a B&B for travelers up here in the mountains”

“Still cool” CJ added

“Hey, who’s this?” Alura stopped and nodded to a large oil painting on the wall, which depicted a rather melancholy looking woman in 19th century finery

“Ah,” Ms. Fresher began “that is apparently the last owner, a Mrs. Andrea Beaumont”

“She’s looks sad” CJ noted with a frown

“She probably is,” Ms. Fresher agreed “the story goes is that she inherited this place from her father, who died from phenomena, then, shortly after moving in, her husband died after falling down the stairs, her children, all of whom were under the age of five also died soon after from various accidents”

“What happened to her?” James asked

“No one really knows,” Ms. Fresher admitted “the story goes is that her father begged her on his death bed to keep the house and never sell it, so she stayed, apparently even died here,” she chuckled “there’s even an old ghost story about her”

“Oh?” James asked

“Mhmm,” Ms. Fresher nodded “supposedly, anytime a family who’s having a dispute checks in, she’ll appear to them one by one, trying to encourage them to look out for each other”

“Huh,” CJ remarked “how do you know so much about this place, Ms. Fresher?” she asked

“I used to live here,” Ms. Fresher explained “back in the 1920s, when it was turned into a B&B”

“Wait,” James frowned “that would make you…,” he trailed off, blinking “oh”

“Very old,” Ms. Fresher chuckled “by Earth’s calendar I just turned ninety-six a few weeks ago”

“Happy birthday” CJ beamed

“Thank you, CJ,” she gestured down the stairs “shall we?” she asked, continuing down the stairs. The other held back, staring at the painting

“Sad,” CJ commented “to lose so much”

“Yeah,” Alura agreed, she looked up, frowning at James “Dad? You OK?”

“I don’t know,” James looked around “I could have _sworn_ that somebody just brushed past me”

“Maybe it’s the ghost of Mrs. Beaumont” CJ chuckled

“Maybe,” James chuckled “come on, I hear they have dinner down there”

“Me first!” the girls began to playfully push and shove at each other as they pounded down the stairs in search of food. Back on the landing, James gave the painting one last uneasy look before following the girls.

******

The den was just that, a large room decorated with antique furniture, much like the rest of the place. A roaring fireplace had been setup the stone fireplace and bookshelves lined the walls

“Oh,” CJ laughed “oh, look at all these books!” she grinned, making a grabbing motion “ooh, I could spend a long time in here!”

“You’re welcome to do so,” the owner, a rather dour-looking man named ‘Mr. Finch’ said. He gave them a smile, which seemed rather forced “the books are available for the guests’ perusal” he explained

“Do you have anything on the history of this place?” James asked

“Over there, sir,” Mr. Finch pointed “by the window”

“Thank you,” James nodded as Mr. Finch left and the other students and parents began to file in “creepy guy” James chuckled

“I know!” Alura whispered “god, he’s like the villain in an old _Scooby-doo_ episode” she shuddered

“So, which one of us is Scooby?” CJ asked

“That’s easy,” Alura chuckled “you”

“Yeah…,” CJ said slowly “I like dogs, I love ‘em actually, so that’s not really much of an insult, try again”

“Hmm” Alura scowled as James left to talk with one of the other parents

“So?” CJ prompted

“So, what?” Alura asked

“Are you going to tell him?” CJ asked

“I will, I will,” Alura groaned “when I’m good and ready”

“When’s that going to be? Doomsday?” CJ asked “just tell him,” she urged “it’s not like he’s going to get mad, your Dad’s a very understanding guy”

“When I’m ready” Alura hissed

“Girls,” James waved them over “come on the food’s ready”

“By right there, Dad,” Alura called back, she glowered at CJ “don’t look at me like that!” she hissed

“Like what?”

“You got that….disapproving face on,” Alura explained “I hate it when you do that, it reminds me of Mom”

“Well, considering that she’s my aunt, is that so surprising?”

“God,” Alura rolled her eyes “do you have to be ‘on’ all the time?”

“That a rhetorical question or did you actually want an answer?”

“Oh my god!”

“Alura! Put her down!” James barked. He turned back to the other parents “I’m sorry about that” he apologized

“Oh, no problem at all,” Mrs. McDougal, the mother of Jake, said “you should this one and his brothers, oh, all the yelling and the fighting, it’s a wonder we still have a house left” she laughed

“Yeah, well, I guess I can count myself grateful that those two don’t live together” James chuckled

“They don’t?” Mrs. McDougal asked, surprised

“No,” James answered “oh!” he exclaimed “oh, no, they’re cousins, not sisters,” he explained “CJ’s actually my niece, the daughter of my sister-in-law”

“Oh,” Mrs. McDougal laughed “god, I thought they were sisters”

“No,” James shook his head “but I could see how you’d think that, we practically raised them together”

“So, you and your sister-in-law are close, then?” Jake asked

“We are” James confirmed

“That’s nice to hear,” Mrs. McDougal commented “personally, I hate my in-laws”

A loud thump made everyone jump

“What was that?” Jake asked

“Might have been the place just settling,” CJ shrugged “it’s an old building” she dismissed, but she squinted up at the ceiling over her glasses, clearly x-raying the place as she slowly looked around. Blinking, she looked over at Alura and James and shook her head, nothing out of the ordinary she was saying. But despite that, a visible sense of unease ran through the group…


	3. Things That Go Bump in the Night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Double update! Enjoy! :=)

******

After the disturbance everyone—even CJ and Alura—had lost their appetites and everyone soon found an excuse to go to bed

“Gah! This fucking Scooby-doo house!” Alura exclaimed as a floor board loudly creaked under her foot

“It’s an old house,” CJ reminded her “old houses creak”

“Hmm,” Alura grumbled “what are you reading?” she asked

“Oh, it’s a book about the history of the area,” CJ explained, sitting up on the bed—which she had won by virtue of James being the shower “it’s kind of interesting, apparently this area is know for unusual occurrences”

“Like how?” Alura asked, sitting down on the bed

“Well, apparently, back when the Russians first settled in part of California, a farmer reported finding a big black stone on his property. Apparently he took it home with him as a curiosity and suffered from terrifying nightmares, deciding that the stone must have been cursed he tried to get rid of it, but it kept reappearing”

“Reappearing?” Alura asked

“Yeah,” CJ pointed a line of text “ _’it appeared with alarming frequency, each time he attempted to dispose of it, it would reappear on its place of honor on the mantle’_ ,” she read “ _’after a time he became convinced that the stone was inhabited by a demon and finally tried to destroy it by smashing it with a hammer, but as he brought the hammer down on the stone, the hammer’s head reportedly shattered, the shrapnel embedding itself within his face and head, killing him instantly’_ ”

“Ew!” Alura pulled a face “so what happened after that?” she asked

“Don’t know,” CJ shrugged “the homestead apparently burned down a few months after the guy died, and his widow was committed to an insane asylum back in Russia, his kids disappeared into history”

“Gruesome,” Alura muttered, as a loud yell from the bathroom followed by a thump startled them both “Dad?!” Alura bolted up and hurried to the bathroom door “Dad, are you all right?”

“I’m all right,” James called back, there was a squeak and the shower stopped, the door opened and a wet, towel-clad James leaned out “would you guys believe I just slipped in the shower” he sighed

“Are you all right?” CJ asked

“I’m OK,” James assured her “just a little sore,” he looked around “could one of you hand me my clothes?”

“Oh,” Alura quickly yanked open his suitcase and pulled out a t-shirt and boxers, holding them out to him while keeping her back to him “please put some clothes on!” she pleaded

“Baby” CJ muttered, just as a loud, blood-curdling scream suddenly broke the air…


End file.
